It’s no exaggeration to say that Danny Rolle has done a fantastic job for Glasgow Rangers since replacing Russell Martin in the Ibrox dugout.
The Light Blues endured a disastrous start to the 2025-26 season under the former Southampton and Swansea head coach, winning just one of their first seven games in the Scottish Premiership.
Martin won only five of the 17 games he led the Scottish side in all competitions, and the team scored just 21 goals in those 17 games.
However, Rohr has won 15 of his 25 games in all competitions with Gers and just watched his team score eight goals in a win over Queen’s Park in the SFA Cup on Sunday.
The German tactician’s influence in the Premiership in particular has been astonishing, with his team winning 13 of their last 17 league games and losing just one.
Ranking the Rangers’ best performers under Roll
Rolle’s coaching showed that some of last summer’s signings were not as poor as they appeared to be during Martin’s time in the Ibrox dugout.
Emmanuel Fernandes, for example, started only one league game under the Scottish manager and didn’t make much of a splash, but he scored four goals in 15 league games as a centre-back and was perhaps his best performance for Gers under the German manager.
Midfield duo Nicholas Raskin, who had been left out of Martin’s squad for a few games, and Conor Barron before this latest injury, also impressed under Rohr with their combative and energetic play in the middle of the park.
rank | player |
|---|---|
1 | Emmanuel Fernandez |
2 | Nicholas Ruskin |
3 | conor barron |
4 | mikey moore |
5 | jayden meghoma |
Mikey Moore, who recorded a goal and an assist in the last Premiership match against Kilmarnock, attracted attention as a former Sheffield Wednesday manager by scoring four league goals.
Jayden Meghoma, on loan from Brentford, also deserves some praise, having started 21 of 22 league games and provided five assists as a left-back in the role.
In addition to these five top performers, the German tactician is slowly bringing other players back to their best level after a slow start to the season.
Rangers star now playing like Joe Aribo
Though he made a great impression, Roll is no magician. Even with his coaching skills, some players still struggled in the early days of his reign at Ibrox, a holdover from Martin’s time as manager.
Mohamed Diomande, who is in the top 20 most expensive signings in the club’s history, did not have the best of days in the months immediately following the German’s arrival.
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He was sent off in November’s Europa League game against Braga, and Michael McEwan posted during December’s 2-1 league defeat to Hearts: “Diomande’s obsession with turning the ball on every time he has possession is completely infuriating.”
In 13 appearances under Roll in 2025, the Ivorian midfielder scored one goal, one assist and one red for the Scottish giants, but this shows that he had little influence at the top end of the pitch, which is why he does not yet rank in the top five.
But since the turn of the year, Diomande has started to look like a managerial version of Gers icon Joe Aribo, an influential and dynamic midfield star.
During his time at Ibrox, Aribo made a habit of playing quality games in the final third, scoring 26 goals and providing 25 assists in all competitions, most notably in the Europa League final against Eintracht Frankfurt.
Diomande may not be at that level yet, but the left-footed star has really shown improvement as of late. In 2026, the Ivorian prodigy played nine games, scoring one goal and providing two assists, surpassing his goal contribution in his first 13 games with Roll.
This includes two assists in his last two games for the Gers, assisting Bojan Miowski against Kilmarnock and James Tavanier against Queen’s Park.
Diomand (Prime Minister) | 24/25 | 25/26 |
|---|---|---|
Appearance | 36 | twenty two |
xG | Not applicable | 2.55 |
the goal | 4 | 1 |
A big opportunity has arisen | 11 | 1 |
Key paths per game | 1.1 | 0.6 |
assist | 7 | 2 |
Diomande’s 11 goals and assists in the 2024-25 Premiership season proved that he is capable of scoring and assisting regularly, as Aribo did during his time with Gers.
But that didn’t carry over to Martin’s time in the dugout, and it took time for Rohr to reach his full potential with midfield ball.
But it was worth the wait. That’s because Diomande looks to be coming into his own as Rangers face Motherwell and Hearts in their next crucial game in the title race.
After Naderi’s debut, Ibrox’s failure appears to have ended against Rangers
This time at Ibrox, where Rangers failed, could already be on borrowed time after signing Ryan Naderi.
Hopefully, the left-footed star continues to impress, proves he can make a difference by contributing goals from a midfield position, and helps Gers win trophies this season.
